Cosmopolitan
by xoxxKit-Katxxox
Summary: (THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE MAGAZING COSMOPOLITAN) Yumi's cousin moves to Kadic and is rooming with Aelita. Is she a help or a hindrance? Do the Lyoko Warriors like her? Do I even know the answer to these questions? Whatever. I'm bad at summaries. Just read it. T to be safe. Contains pairings later in the story. You don't get to find out yet.
1. First Encounters

**A/N: Never done a Code Lyoko Fic before… Don't know if it'll be good, but we'll see! Love the show, I still watch it all the time! It's one of my all time favorites. Anywho, this story contains pairings that some of you may not like, and to all ye who judge me, I say: Don't like, don't read, don't flame. No lemons will be written, and if there are, I will warn you beforehand, so DO READ MY AUTHOR'S NOTES! IT MAY SAVE YOUR INNOCENCE! Anyway, Disclaimer: I own no characters except my OC(s), nor do I own the show, or anything affiliated with it. That privilege belongs to other people.**

**Chapter One: First Encounters**

**Faye POV**

I looked at the principal, smiling half-heartedly. He was droning on about how he was sure I was going to be very happy at Kadic Academy, and for all I knew at that point, I was, but I simply wasn't in the mood to listen to this. It had been quite a long plane ride, and then a long ride here. Mr. Delmas smiled as he bragged about how some of the brightest students in the country attended this prestigious boarding school, and how my grades seemed to reflect that I'd do well here as well. I sighed. Yeah, I was brilliant. So what? I doubted it would matter much. I wouldn't have any friends. Finally, Mr. Delmas stopped talking about the school, and the phys. ed. teacher, Mr. Morales, was called into the room.

"Our Gym teacher, Mr. Morales, will be happy to show you to your room now, Miss Ishiyama," he said kindly. "I will inform your uncle about your arrival as soon as possible. I'm sure Yumi will be excited to see you." He smiled as Mr. Morales led me out of the room.

_Not likely,_ I thought to myself, walking beside the gym teacher as he led me across campus. _I haven't seen her since we were babies. We won't even recognize each other. Or, she won't recognize me at least._ I would recognize her. My family had a picture of her in the living room, next to the pictures of other various relatives. I never really understood why, since our families didn't really talk anymore, beyond Christmas cards containing family pictures. Yumi's father was my father's older brother. They had had a falling out when my father married my mother, who was a white American woman descended from mostly English ancestors, not Japanese at all. They eventually made peace, but it was a cold peace. When I was born, they tried harder to be more warm towards each other, for Yumi's and my sake, but I was even less welcome around my uncle than my mother was, due to the mixed heritage I possessed. Eventually, getting sick of watching my uncle's upturned nose whenever I was around, my father finally ceased most communication and visitation to him. I don't know that my aunt was ever so close-minded, but that hardly mattered. I just hoped now that my cousins would be a little more understanding than my uncle had been all those years ago.

"So, you see much of Yumi?" the gym teacher asked, jarring me from my thoughts.

"No, sir. I've not seen her since we were very young. It's kind of hard with our family so wide spread," I said politely.

"Oh, well she's a nice girl, your cousin. Runs around with a bunch of troublemakers though," he said.

"I'm sure her friends are nice, too," I said, diplomatically. "I'm sure she rubs off on them."

"Right. Well, here's your room," he said, dismissing my comment. Truly, that didn't matter. I honestly had no clue about Yumi or her friends. "You don't need to worry about calling me Sir or Mr. Morales, the name's Jim, okay? If you need anything, call on me, alright?"

I nodded and smiled. "Yes, Sir—er—Jim. Thank you."

As he walked off, I unlocked my door and walked in. The furniture was mirrored on both sides, beds with drawers on the bottom, closets, and then on the back wall a computer desk. The right side of the room was covered in pink, however, so I assumed it was taken and set my stuff down on the other side. There were pink sheets on the occupied bed, as well as a pink bunny poster pinned to the wall. The closet door was opened and I could see only pink inside of it. I winced. I hated the color pink. _Keep an open mind, Faye. You could learn to like it,_ I told myself optimistically. Then I glanced back at the bunny poster. _Or at least learn to live with it,_ I added, dryly.

"Honestly, Aelita, I don't know anything about her. I haven't seen her for years," I heard a voice say as two people entered into the room. "Oh," she said upon seeing me. "Hello." She was tall, with black hair and dark, nearly black eyes. Her hair was short and parted to one side, and she wore a midriff-bearing, long-sleeved shirt and black pants, with black shoes. Yumi.

"Hi," the other—I think I'd heard Yumi call her Aelita?—said. She had pixie-cut pink hair, green eyes, and wore a dark pink dress, pink boots, and a light pink long-sleeved shirt with two fuzzy pull strings.

"Hi. You must be my roommate, and you must be Yumi," I said, looking at each of them in turn, and extending my hand towards the pink-haired girl.

"Yeah, my name's Aelita. How'd you know I was your roommate?" she asked, shaking my hand.

I gestured at her side of the room then at her outfit. "I saw all the pink," I said simply. I extended my hand towards Yumi, nervously. "It's nice to see you again, Yumi."

"You, too, Veronica," she said, smiling and shaking my hand. "It's been years." And, just like that, the nervousness inside me vanished. I smiled back.

"Would you like help unpacking?" Aelita asked. "I've been so excited to meet you."

"Um, yeah, sure," I answered, a bit taken aback by the friendliness. "And, I prefer Faye, Yumi." I smiled at her as I said this, then opened one of my three suitcases and started pulling out clothing. The two of them helped me start hanging them.

"Wow, I love this top!" Yumi said, holding up a silk kimono-inspired shirt with long sleeves. It was red and even had the tie around the stomach.

I grinned. "Do you? I got it in Okinawa when my mother and I were visiting last year. We were going to see Grandma and Grandpa Ishiyama. Dad couldn't go because he had some work come up right at the last second."

"It's beautiful," Aelita said. "Not really my color though." I laughed.

"Sorry, I don't own anything pink," I said, smiling.

"Well, that's alright. We probably aren't the same size anyway," she said, looking at me. I was taller, and my chest and hips curvier. I frowned.

"Yeah, probably not," I agreed. I looked down at my usual outfit. It was practical: durable stone washed jeans, a red tank top and a cropped, short sleeved black leather jacket. My shoes were just black sneakers. Nothing I had would suit her style or size.

"So anyway, how come your parents opted for you to be a boarder instead of having you stay with Yumi?" Aelita asked.

"I guess they didn't want to impose," I answer, not looking at Yumi. I didn't know if she knew about her father's feelings towards my family and me in particular, but I didn't want to bring it up.

"Our parents don't talk much," Yumi added, closing the subject with her voice. "So, did you guys hear about the new Subsonics concert? It's supposed to be the best one ever," she added.

"Who are the Subsonics?" I asked, looking at them.

"Only one of the best bands ever," some boy answered, coming into the room. I quickly shut my suitcase, hiding my bras and panties. He had blond hair gelled into a spike with a purple dot in the middle, and wore some kind of weird two-toned purple pants and a purple long-sleeved shirt with a pink one under it and brown shoes. Two others followed him, looking less colorful by comparison. One was really short, blonde, wore glasses, a blue sweater, short khaki pants, and black shoes. The other was taller than the other two, brown-haired with brown eyes, and wore a dark green shirt over a light green shirt and cargo pants.

"Faye, this is Odd, Ulrich, and Jeremy," Yumi said, pointing at each of them in turn. "They're my our other friends," she added. "Guys, this is my cousin, Faye."

"Nice to meet you all," I said, waving from where I stood.

"I thought your name was Veronica?" Jeremy asked.

"That's my first name, yes, but I like Faye better. It's one of my middle names," I explained.

"Oh, that's cool. So you live in Japan?" Odd asked, plopping down on Aelita's bed. I moved my suitcases off of mine so that there would be more room for seating, which the others took happily, Yumi, Ulrich, and I sitting on mine, and Aelita and Jeremy joining Odd on Aelita's.

"Well, yes, but not always. My mom travels a lot, because she's a Major in the United States Army Nurse Corps," I said with pride, "so, sometimes I get to go with her to other places. Just not always."

"Oh that's really cool. I didn't know your mom did that," Yumi said. I smiled.

"Yeah, she is really cool." I smile. "My dad's nice, too. I think you'd like him. He does some kind of electrical engineering. We live near a very important army base called Torii Station, near Okinawa in a small village called Yomitan. My father works in Okinawa, and my mother obviously works on base."

"So do you get to see a whole lot of fighting?" Ulrich asked. I chuckle a little bit.

"No, Ulrich. Mostly the base is pretty peaceful. They also tend to a lot of civilian needs."

"So do you see grandma and grandpa Ishiyama a lot then? Living that close to Okinawa?" Yumi asked.

"Oh, yes. I used to see them quite a bit. Not from here though." I get up and start continuing to unpack, books and personal belongings going neatly into the drawers under my bed. I emptied one suitcase of books and posters, setting the posters aside to hang up later, as well as an ornately decorated dagger knife that had been in my family on my father's side for generations. I laid my sketch pad next to it and continued unpacking.

"Hey, what's that?" Yumi asked, pointing at a silk object in the bottom of the suitcase.

"It's a Kimono. Traditional Japanese attire," I added to Ulrich and Jeremy's confused faces. "It's sort of like a dress," I add, pulling it out and holding up the smooth red fabric. It was beautiful deep red with black and gold accents.

"It's beautiful," Yumi breathed, appreciating the culture of it as well as the actual beauty. Aelita and Odd both agreed, though Jeremy and Ulrich's agreement seemed half hearted.

"Thank you," I said, smiling. "I'm really proud of both sides of my heritage. It's just easier to get some of the traditional stuff from the Japanese side, since I live there."

"Oh, so you aren't fully Japanese?" Ulrich asked.

"That's why you're paler than Yumi!" Odd said. "Not that that's a bad thing at all!" he added.

I just smiled at him. "No, it's not. Like I said, I'm proud of both sides. My father is Yumi's uncle, and completely Japanese. My mother is America, and her ancestors were mostly English, with I think some Scottish and Welsh mixed in. So yeah, I'm only half Japanese. But I like it. I mean, I like to think that it's had a good effect on my appearance and my openness to other cultures. My parents have to work around blending their cultures so much, it's taught me to be really tolerant and respectful. Some people… well, they just don't think it's right for races and cultures to clash and mix like my family, but I think it helps us to be more cosmopolitan."

"That's really cool, Faye," Aelita said.

"I'm Italian. My entire family's Italian. I never really got outside that box until I came here," Odd said, stretching out. "It must be cool to grow up with such different parents."

"Like I said, it isn't without its challenges, but I love how my family is."

"Do you eat with chopsticks at home?" Ulrich asked.

"Not always. Depends on whether we're eating Japanese food or American. It's hard to eat a hot dog with chopsticks."

Yumi smiled at me. "I can imagine."

I nodded. "I did try it once though, just to see if I could. My parents weren't around, you know. It, um, didn't work as well as I'd hoped."

"So do you do Christmas?" Jeremy asked.

"Um… well, my mom and I do. We're Christians. But my father's not. He respects it and everything, and he celebrates the gift giving and decorating and food, but as far as the church service and the religious aspects, no."

"Does that make it difficult? If my parents disagreed on something like that, it would cause a terrible argument," Yumi said.

"No, it doesn't really. I mean, we're respectful of each other. Each of us is entitled to be unique," I said finally emptying the last of the stuff out of my suitcases. I laid two Japanese fans on my bed next to the dagger and sketch pad.

"That's cool. I think maybe I'd like your family's way of thinking better than mine," Yumi said, smiling sadly.

"I don't know. I think your family just wants to preserve what they feel is being lost," I said. "There's merits to both ways of thinking, and I don't know that either is right or wrong. They're just different. Like everything else." I scoot around the wall side of the bed and hold one of the open fans up, gently tacking underneath the sides of it, holding it open and on the wall without puncturing it. I do the same to the other one.

"Hey, if we don't hurry up, we're going to miss dinner!" Odd exclaimed looking at the clock on his phone. "It's meatballs and gravy tonight!"

"Odd, how do you stay so scrawny if you're always thinking about food?" Yumi teased.

Odd's face took on a look of indignation. "I am _not_ scrawny! I'm svelte," he said.

"Alright, let's go," Ulrich said, rolling his eyes at Odd as he got up and went outside. Yumi followed, as did Jeremy and Odd. Aelita stopped in the doorway and looked back at me.

"Are you coming?" she asked.

"Uh, yeah. Sure," I say smiling. We made it to just outside the cafeteria before Yumi stopped us.

"Well, I've gotta go now. My parents will be wondering where I am," she said. "Since I'm just a day student, I don't eat dinner here," she explained to my bewildered expression.

"Oh, alright. Well, it was really great seeing you," I said, smiling widely.

"You, too, Faye. I can't wait to see you tomorrow. I think you'll probably be in most of my classes," she said.

"Yeah, I think Mr. Delmas said I would be," I replied.

"Great," she smiled back, just as widely. "We'll talk more then." To my astonishment, she hugged me, then the others said goodbye to her and she left. As soon as she was out of sight, some girl with black long black hair and a midriff bearing tight shirt walked up. She had long pants on with a skirt over them and wore a headband and makeup.

"Ulrich, honey, did you find someone better than that string bean Yumi?" she asked, eyeing me. Her voice was high pitched and irritating.

"Shut it, Sissi," Ulrich said, glaring at her.

"Aren't you going to introduce us?" Sissi asked, looking at me. "No, nevermind. I can kind of see a resemblance. You must be the other Ishiyama girl."

"Yeah. Why?" I asked, folding my arms over my chest.

"No reason. Just thought you should know who the prettiest girl on campus is," she said, flipping her hair. "I'm Sissi, the principal's daughter."

"I'm Faye Ishiyama, and I'd think the prettiest girl on campus wouldn't need so much makeup," I said, smirking as her cheeks flushed in anger.

"Just you wait, Ishiyama, you'll see who the boys all fawn over," she said.

"Every boy but the one you want anyway!" Odd laughed.

"Can it, Della Robbia!" she yelled.

"What can I say? I don't like a girl with no personality," Ulrich said as we walked away.

"What's her deal anyway?" I asked, wondering why she attacked us.

"Oh, that's just Sissi for you. She's rude, and her head's all full of air," Odd said.

"She likes Ulrich, and is jealous because he spends so much time with Yumi," Aelita added.

"Alright. Noted," I said, taking my tray and going through dinner.

I listened a lot at dinner, not really talking much, preferring to hear about the others' classes and such. Aelita even offered to help me find my first one, since we'd be headed in the same direction the next morning. I thanked her and told her I'd really appreciate it. After dinner, we went back towards our rooms. Aelita and my room was on a different floor than the boys' so we sort of dropped them off first, offering good night wishes, then went on to our floor. After we got into our room, I finished tacking up the dagger and a couple sketches, then put the sketch pad away and laid down on my bed.

"Hey Aelita?" I asked, kicking off my shoes. "Where's the shower?" I asked, turning to look at her.

"At the end of the hall on your right," she said helpfully. "How long do you think you'll be gone?" she asked, sitting on her bed.

"I don't know. Not very long. I just want to relax," I say smiling. I quickly change out of my clothes and into a robe, then walk down to where she directed. I take a quick, ten minute shower in scalding water to relax the stress away, and then pull my robe back on and head back into my room. When I get back, Aelita's wearing an oversized pink T-shirt with a red letter A on the front, and white socks. She's reading. I quickly change into a black tank top and red plaid short shorts for bed, choosing to sleep barefoot.

I sit on my bed, facing Aelita as she reads. _Despite all the pink, she really is a nice person,_ I think to myself._ Kind of pretty, too. Her hair's cute._ There's a cute little elf doll on her bed next to her that I had missed earlier. Somehow, that seemed to fit her really well. She finishes her page, marks her place, then lays the book down and turns to face me.

"Sorry. I've never had a sleepover before, so I don't really know how to act," she said apologetically.

"You don't have to act at all. For the most part, I think what you do is just talk and eventually fall asleep," I say, laying down under my blankets, curling on my side in a ball.

"Oh, well, what do we talk about?" She asks, as if this were a social experiment.

"Anything you want. Typical topics are boys, clothes, school, and family."

"Oh. Well, I still don't know. Maybe I should think about it and we can talk tomorrow, since I don't know what to say," she said, yawning as she slid under the blankets, making me yawn, too.

"If you want," I say softly, my eyes drifting shut.

"I think that it is," she answered, but I was already half asleep, too tired to answer.

**A/N: I know it was a pretty boring first chapter, but it should get better as it goes along. This was mostly one of those 'Introduce-A-Character!' chapters. Is okay though. Want to review? Yay! Don't want to review? Alright, fine. :-P**


	2. Singing in the Rain

**A/N: So, again, I don't own this, going to set up the pairs soon, blah blah blah… No lemons this chapter. Probably won't be in this story. If there do happen to be, I will up the rating, k? No worries. :)**

**Chapter Two: Singing in the Rain**

**Aelita POV**

Faye woke up early the next morning, probably because I had warned her about Sissi's shower habits the day before at dinner. She tried hard to avoid waking me up, but I had already been awake for a while, because I'd had a nightmare, so it wasn't necessary. As I looked up at her back from my bed, she started to change clothes. Startled, I looked away, not wanting to intrude on her privacy. She pulled on the robe of hers and then turned back to look at me for a second. Me looking back at her must have startled her, because she dropped the pair of shorts in her hand and jumped.

"Aelita! You startled me. I didn't know you were awake," she said, picking up the shorts and putting them back on her bed.

"I'm sorry, I've been awake for a little over an hour. I didn't want to wake you," I answered, watching her as she folded her shorts and tank top neatly and made her bed.

"It's alright. Are you going to shower this morning?" she asked, turning back to me.

"Um, now that you mention it, yes, I think I will," I said, deciding that I wanted to after all.

"Do you want me to wait for you?" she asked, leaning lightly against the wall as she watched me get up.

"No, I don't think you have to. You'd better get there before the line starts getting long," I said, gathering my shower things.

"Okay. I'll see you here after," she said, smiling as she left. After gathering my things, I left. By the time I got there, she was already in the shower, but there wasn't a line. I got into the one next to hers, the only open one, and turned on the water. As I washed my hair, I heard her singing softly to herself, her voice clear and gentle, just barely audible over the sounds of water slapping against skin and the floor. I finished my shower and walked out to get my robe, which had fallen out of the little shelf in my stall and been kicked into the aisle between the showers. I did this as she was walking out of her stall and accidentally bumped into her. The soft material of her robe brushed against my skin as I fell backwards, prepared to hit the floor, only I didn't. Her hand reached out and caught me so fast I didn't realize she had until she pulled me upright.

"I'm sorry, Aelita, are you okay?" she asked, picking up my robe for me and handing it to me. I quickly covered myself, blushing slightly.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I just, um, didn't see you," I said awkwardly.

"I should have been watching where I was going. It was my fault," she said, pulling her loosely fastened robe more tightly around her. "You're done, I take it?" she asked.

"Um, yeah, I've just got to grab my stuff and I'm ready." I did so, and together we exited the showers. We got back to our room and started getting ready.

**Faye POV**

So after that encounter with Aelita in the showers, it was a little awkward once we got back to our room. Aelita dried off quickly and got dressed, hanging her robe up to dry. I dried my hair and put it up in a loose bun, using the mirror on the back of one of my closet doors. The trouble was, if I shifted wrong, I could see Aelita's small frame in the background, and her movement would draw my eyes to her. Finally finishing my hair as she was finishing dressing, I started to dry off and change into clothes as well.

**Aelita POV**

I watched from behind her as Faye pulled her long, nearly-black hair back into a loose bun, skipping a hair dryer and instead just using a towel. The robe was loose, but because it was wet, it hugged her curves tightly, making me slightly jealous as I thought about how I didn't really have any curves. I mean, I did a little, but not like her chest, which was slightly bigger than Yumi's, or her subtle yet defined hips. I felt kind of flat in comparison, but tried not to think about that as I watched her put on very little makeup in the mirror, accentuating her pretty face. Her eyes weren't black like Yumi's, but they were brown, a nice medium brown with glints of amber in them. She and I looked nothing alike, I realized. She was even fairly tall, where I was short, though I thought maybe the age difference contributed to that. I also decided that she shared a lot of Yumi's qualities, but slightly lighter on all of them. Even her skin was a shade lighter than Yumi's.

I finally finished dressing and went to brush out my hair, not needing a mirror. My hair was short and didn't need anything done to it. As I glanced back at Faye, I noticed she had put on her bra and underwear, making me turn away, slightly uncomfortable looking at so much of her exposed body. I watched her shadow put on her pants, tank top, and jacket, then she came and plopped down on her bed across from me sitting on mine. Together, we put our shoes on, me taking slightly less time since I didn't have to tie them. I stood and fixed my bed and pajamas, then looked at her. "Ready for your first day at Kadic?" I asked, smiling at her.

"As ready as I'll ever be," she said, standing as well.

"Alright, first we go to the science building," I replied, heading out the door. We walked along the path, chatting about first day nerves, the awkwardness of earlier forgotten. As we made our way towards Jeremy, Ulrich, Odd, and Yumi, Sissi walked up to Ulrich and began her antics. Faye and I quickened our pace to see what the fuss was about this time.

"Ulrich, sweetie, I got permission from my father for us to go out to a movie this weekend! Isn't that great?" she asked excitedly.

"What movie is it?" Faye asked, striding up to the group and standing next to Yumi. I stood by Odd.

"What's it to you, fattie?" she asked, making me mad instantly. How dare she call Faye fat? "This date is private, for Ulrich and me only."

Faye glared. "Are you going to actually shut up for a little bit and watch the movie, or do you intend to torture him with that annoying voice of yours?" Herb and Nicolas snickered at her joke, making Sissi even more angry.

"Wanna talk about torturing people with your voice? Yours in the shower this morning was like nails on a chalkboard," she said.

"At least she took a shower this morning, Sissi," I said. "I hope that's just a new perfume and not how you actually smell." Odd laughed.

"No, I'm pretty sure she's always smelled that way," he said.

Sissi's cheeks turned red with anger as she looked at the three of us, but before she could insult any of us again, Ulrich piped up. "Sissi, not only do I not want to go to the movies with you, but I can't go to the movies with you because I'm going to the Subsonics concert with Yumi," he said.

To her shocked face, Jeremy added, "Better luck next time!" and we walked off, leaving her with Herb and Nicolas as we walked to the Science building.

As we were leaving, I heard her say, "Two Ishiyamas are even worse than one!"

"Okay, so that girl's really irritating," Faye said to the group as we walked. "Does she do this a lot?"

Jeremy smiled. "Every time she sees Yumi and Ulrich together."

"Or just when she wants to hear herself talk," Yumi added, a light blush appearing on her cheeks at Jeremy's comment.

"Or when she just wants to be mean," I added softly, recalling my first days at Kadic. "It's best to stay clear of her and not listen to anything she says."

Faye nodded as Yumi stopped at a classroom door. "Well, this is our stop. See you guys later!" she added, smiling at us.

"Do you know where your next class is?" I asked Faye, not wanting to leave her if she needed help.

"She's got it with me, so I'll show her," Yumi said. Faye smiled and nodded.

"Oh, okay. We'll meet up with you guys for lunch, then," I said, turning to walk with the boys to class. I glanced back, watching first Yumi then Faye disappear into the classroom.

They boys and I talked about Faye as we went. "She seems really cool," Ulrich said to us as we entered into our own classroom.

"Yeah, I like her. Not afraid to take on Sissi," Odd replied, smiling.

"I think it's cool how she does mixed martial arts, too," Ulrich added.

"And archery," said Jeremy. "Remember she was telling us about that tournament yesterday?"

"She's really nice, too. I like her," I added in.

"Do you think she could be good for Lyoko?" Jeremy asked us in a hushed voice as Mrs. Hertz walked in.

"I think we probably should get to know her better first," Ulrich said quietly as Mrs. Hertz started talking about photosynthesis.

"Yeah, but we should definitely mention it to Yumi. I mean, it could be really cool having another person to help out. Especially with things in Sector 5. That Scyphozoa is horrible," I added.

"Aelita Stones," Mrs. Hertz said, looking at me. "Seeing as you must obviously know all about today's lesson because you're talking instead of listening to me, please come up here and write the chemical equation for photosynthesis."

I got up from my seat and walked to the board, then wrote the equation with ease, as I did happen to know all about today's lesson. I loved plants. Botany was really interesting. When I finished, I put the chalk down and looked at her, checking for her approval. Irritated that she couldn't embarrass me in front of the class like she usually did with Odd or Ulrich, she told me to go back to my seat and that if she caught me talking again, she would give me a detention. I sat back down and listened to the class long lecture of things I already knew.

**Faye POV**

I sat next to Yumi at one of the lab tables in our Chemistry class, nervously glancing around. She smiled at some guy as he barely squeaked into the door before the bell rang. He smiled back, and then looked at me as if confused.

"Who are you?" he asked me curiously, glancing from me to Yumi.

"I'm Faye Ishiyama. I'm Yumi's cousin," I said, a little nervous. He had messy black hair that was a little long, and wore Jeans and a ret long sleeved shirt with a black T-shirt over it. He was cute.

"I'm William Dunbar, Yumi's friend," he said, "and you're in my seat."

"I figured she could sit here with us, since all the other tables have two people as well. We can just be a group of three," Yumi said pleasantly.

"Oh, okay, cool," he said good naturedly. "I didn't mean for that to come across as rude. If it did, I'm sorry," he added, speaking to me as he pulled up a chair between Yumi and I. Not long after, the teacher, Mr. Windsor, came in.

"Yes, now settle down class. We have a new student today that I'd like you all to meet. Veronica, would you please stand and introduce yourself to the class?" he said as he pulled out different lab equipment.

"Yes, Sir," I said, standing. "I'm Veronica Ishiyama, but I prefer you call me Faye," I announced, then sat back down.

"Ishiyama?" Mr. Windsor asked, looking over his glasses at the class roster. "Are you two related?" he asked, looking from me to Yumi and back again.

"Yes, Sir," I answered.

"We're cousins," she added.

"Yes, very good, I can see the resemblance. Welcome to our school, Miss Ishiyama."

"Thank you, Sir."

"Yes. Today, class, we're going to learn about a certain group of elements on the periodic table." He set three metals down on the table, and pointed at each in turn. "This one is the most common, this one the next common, this one the least common of the three most common elements in this group. The first two are essential elements; they are electrolytes in the body. The third has many uses as well, commonly used in batteries. All elements in this group are metal. They are also highly reactive and should be handled with care because if they react with water, they explode. Traveling down the group, the elements' boiling points and melting points decrease. Can anybody tell me first the names of these elements, then the name of the group to which they belong?"

I raised my hand. No one else did. Yumi and William looked at me a little shocked. Mr. Windsor, seeming bemused, called on me to answer. I took a deep breath and then pointed at the first element. "That one there is Sodium; it has the chemical symbol Na. It combines with Chlorine to form Sodium Chloride, more commonly known as table salt, and, as you said, is the most common element in this group. The one next to it is Potassium, and it's symbol is K. It's a necessary that one intakes enough Potassium because a deficiency… well, it's not pretty. Most people with Potassium deficiency or borderline deficiency find bananas to be an excellent source to help correct the problem. The last one up there is Lithium, represented by Li. Lithium is the first element in the group, and has an atomic number of three. The three metals you've shown us are members of the alkali metal group, the first group on the periodic table. This group is characterized by high reactivity, low densities, and the possession of one valence electron in their outer shells. The metals are all soft, and all are silver, except for Cesium, which has a gold tint to it. From top to bottom, the elements in the group of alkali metals are Lithium, Sodium, Potassium, Rubidium, Cesium and Francium." I finished, crossing my feet at the ankles as I sat in the stool.

Mr. Windsor looked at me for a moment, as did the rest of the class, most had their mouths hanging open in shock. "Yes, um, very good. Well done, Miss Ishiyama," Mr. Windsor said, finally drawing the attention from me. "Yes, as Miss Ishiyama said, these metals have one valence electron in their outer shells…." He continued. I was listening attentively even though I already knew what he was saying when William nudged my side with his elbow. I looked over to see Yumi and him still staring at me.

"I didn't know you were so smart," Yumi said. "Do you think you could help me with this stuff? I don't understand any of it. Half the words he's saying right now don't even make sense."

"Yeah, do you think you'd help me, too?" William asked me as well. "I don't get it either."

I smiled. "Yeah, sure. Chemistry is really easy, once you figure out what it's all about. I'm sure I can tutor you both."

"Great," Yumi smiled at me, then the three of us turned our attention back to Mr. Windsor. If the rest of my classes went this well, I didn't think I had anything to worry about for the rest of the year.

**A/N: Two chapters in two days! That's a record for me, haha. Anyway. So like I said, things will be getting better. Mostly the first few have to be set up chapters. I know, I hate that part, too. Anyway, I'll write again soon I'm sure.**


	3. Being a Hero

**A/N: Chapter three up! Hooray!**

**Chapter Three: Being a Hero**

**Odd POV**

Ulrich gazed into space, eyes open and seeming focused on the board, but, as his best friend, I knew better. His mind was completely elsewhere. Aelita's was too, it seemed, but at least she really was kind of paying attention. Ulrich was lost to us. He barely blinked as I sketched him lightly on my piece of paper, not bothering to take notes. Honestly, I wouldn't remember this stuff anyway. As I sketched him, eyeing him out of the corner of my eye, I wondered what he was thinking about. Probably Yumi and William again. Not many people know this, but Ulrich never really liked Yumi, at least not romantically. She liked him first, and he sort of felt like he was supposed to like her back. The whole on again and off again thing really got on his nerves though, and it tried the patience of everyone on Team Lyoko, particularly me. Ulrich was my best friend. I didn't want to see him going through such complicated things day in and day out. I didn't understand why he didn't just pick any of the other girls around that were clearly smitten with his athletic good looks. As I thought this, Ulrich moved slightly, jarring himself out of his thoughts, and ruining the pose. Sad and a little frustrated at this, I worked a little longer from memory before it was finished, but it didn't quite look right. I stuffed it into my sketch pad with all the others and returned my attention to the board. It did me little good. I'd missed the first three quarters of the lecture. I had no clue what we were talking about.

A note landed in front of me, making me jump. It was in Ulrich's sloppy and very pressured handwriting, making me grin, excited to read it. There was just a childish adrenaline rush about passing notes with your best friend in class. I let the excitement bubble for a little bit and then read it.

**Odd—Do you have any idea what she's talking about?**

No, I wasn't paying any attention, I scrawled back, handing it to him. He sighed frustrated then replied.

**I hate science. It's a waste of time. To think, we could be on Lyoko figuring out how to kill XANA.**

I enjoy the breaks we get most of the time. I just wish I didn't have to spend my time off from saving the world in a science classroom.

**No kidding. This sucks.** I didn't respond to him for a moment, mostly because I felt he'd pretty much summed it up. Then he added, **What do you think of Yumi's cousin?**

Like I said, she's nice and I like that she can keep Sissi in check. Why?

**Just curious if you were going to try to date her, too, or not.**

I didn't really have a response to that, so I thought for a second. No. I don't think so. She isn't really my type. And if she joins the Lyoko Warriors, I really couldn't date her.

**I thought your type was anything with legs. And why couldn't you date her if she joined up?**

Haha, very funny. I have a very selective type. The only trouble is, a lot of girls are very selected. And I couldn't date her because we'd be around each other too much. And, well, we would eventually become more like friends. It's the same reason I could never date Yumi or Aelita.

**No, you couldn't date Aelita because she's** A nasty scribble flowed over the paper as I snatched it away and stuffed it into my pocket. I gestured at Jeremy and Aelita. Jeremy didn't know Aelita's, well, situation, and Aelita didn't know that Ulrich had found out… from me no less. Ulrich repressed a laugh and I glared freely. We sat there, pretending to pay attention. Not long after our note writing was finished, the bell rang.

I hopped up, excited to go to Italian because it was my ancestors' language. My grandparents spoke it at home all the time when I was younger, and my parents knew a little, but I wanted to know all of it. Ulrich and Jeremy trailed behind me, Aelita next to me. She appeared to look for Yumi and Faye as they exited their classroom and wasn't disappointed. They appeared walking out of the door, not long before we got there. They walked in front of us, because they hadn't seen us. William walked in the middle and the two Ishiyama girls were on either side of him. It was kind of funny, they seemed like a matched set. All with dark eyes and hair, wearing black, though Faye was the most colorful. Aelita seemed to notice this too, and looked down at herself, seeming a little sad.

"Hey, what's wrong, Aelita?" I asked, softly enough for the others not to hear.

"Nothing. Just… Just Faye… She's really great. I just wish I'd fit in with them a little better," she said just as softly. "I'd like to hang out with her more."

"So you girls are getting along well?" I asked, winking at her. She blushed, making me smile.

"Well, yes, I mean… Like I said, I like her," she smiled. "I just don't know if… well, you know."

"Right. I do," I sighed, thinking back to class. "We should meet at the factory, you and I, to talk after we eat a quick lunch."

She nodded. "That sounds great."

Well, we sat all the way through Italian, and when we were finished, we headed off for lunch. We met up with Yumi and Faye, who had left William with some other friends of his. Milly and Timya came up suddenly, snapping a picture of Faye standing with Yumi. "Yumi, Faye! Would you answer some questions for the Kadic news?" Milly asked, flipping open a note pad.

"I'd be happy to," Faye said, "but we're about to eat. Can it wait 'til later?" The two stubbornly agreed that it could, then we made our way through the line. Jeremy went first, followed by Yumi, Ulrich, me, Faye, and Aelita. We all sat at the same table. We talked, laughed, and ate, then I made the excuse that I needed to go see Kiwi. Aelita said she'd go with me and we left to make our escape to the factory. Once we were in the sewers, she and I started to talk about things.

"How's Ulrich?" she asked. "Is the Yumi situation getting any better?"

"Yeah… I mean, he's gotten to where he realizes he doesn't want her. He just… doesn't quite know what to do about it. I mean, I think it's hard for him to accept that he doesn't after all this time of trying to get her, you know?"

"Do you know how he came to this conclusion?" she asked, not probingly, but gently. Kindly. This was why I loved Aelita more than anyone else in our group, with the exception of Ulrich, as he was my best friend. Aelita was like a sister though, and I loved her dearly for that. It was nice to finally have someone to talk to about everything. She wasn't judgmental. Really, she was in a similar situation.

"Yeah," I sighed. "He said he likes someone else. Wouldn't tell me who." By this time, we were swinging on the ropes down to the bottom.

"Any idea who?" she asked. I shook my head sadly.

"But that's okay. What about you?" I asked as we got in the elevator.

"Well, I don't know what to do. I mean, we just met. How am I supposed to… I just don't know." She blushed. This was the trouble of being the way we were. We were the minority. Or so we thought. A lot of people didn't actually act on it, were content to live their lives in misery instead of standing up and facing what they felt. It made me sad, really.

"Do you have any idea?" I asked, unintentionally mimicking her earlier words. She shook her head, looking defeated. I put my arm around her as we entered the lab, offering comfort. Or, I hope that's what I was doing. That's what the intention was. Her mobile rang, startling us both.

She fished it out of her pocket and held it to her ear. "Faye? What's going on?"

**Aelita POV**

"Faye? What's going on?" I asked.

"Aelita! I didn't know who else to call, I don't have anyone else's number. Yumi's gone crazy! We were just in the cafeteria and having a good time. She started freaking out and attacking us! There was lightning shooting out of her fingers and she picked up Jeremy and _threw_ him across the room! I was so scared! Ulrich got him out and William is in there trying to hold her off, but we don't know how long that'll be and I'm so confused! What just happened?" Faye rushed, panicking a bit.

"Faye, listen very, very carefully to me. You need to find Ulrich and tell him that we need him on Lyoko," I said calmly, hoping to soothe Faye's nerves. It seemed to work a little bit.

"What's Loko?" she asked, the panic momentarily replaced with curiosity.

"He'll know what it means, Faye. Just stay calm. Find him, tell him if he can to bring Jeremy. If not, then leave him some place safe. I have to go now. Be safe, Faye." I had to get to Lyoko and deactivate the tower. I'd already found its location using the superscan. I had to save Faye. I couldn't let her get hurt.

"No! Aelita don't leave me! All this weird stuff is going on!" she exclaimed, her voice filled with raw fear. Sheer terror held my undivided attention at the thought of Faye alone with Yumi still on the loose.

"Faye, it's okay. Calm down," I said soothingly. Then I heard Faye screaming before the line disconnected and there was a dead tone.

**Faye POV**

I ran with Sissi, Herb, and Yumi on my tail. I ran blindly, going far too fast to pay much attention to where I was going. Aelita's voice still reverberated in my head, telling me it was okay, that I needed to be calm. Well, that was pretty easy for Aelita to say. She wasn't here with these three, was she? I saw the direction that Ulrich had taken off to with Jeremy, and followed it, leaving it to faith that I would find my way to him. Then, all of a sudden, somehow, Yumi was in front of me, blocking my path. It was like she had moved with some kind of super-human speed. Sissi and Herb stood behind me, blocking any attempts at a retreat.

"Yumi? What did you do to William?" I asked nervously, sizing up the fight. Yumi said nothing, and made to hit me. I dodged it, but just barely, and ducked under her arm, backing towards the park. "Yumi, I don't want to fight! I don't want to hurt you!" I said, dodging more blows. Shockingly, Herb grabbed me from behind and held me in place with a shockingly tight grip for someone so wimpy looking. I'd been so focused on not getting killed by Yumi that I didn't see him move behind me. Sissi stood off to the side, as though she thought this would be quick work and she wasn't needed. Yumi advanced, eyes flashing with some strange symbol. Yumi's fist snaked forward, connecting with a soft cartilage nose. Blood spurted over the back of my clothes and Herb was knocked away from me, letting me go. Again, I had ducked, escaping just barely at the last nanosecond. Yumi and Sissi closed in, eyes flashing that weird symbol and fingers sparking. Realizing I had no choice, but hating to do it, I used a round-house kick that should've hit the both of them in the head, except for some reason, my foot went _through_ them. "This is bad," I stated, becoming more terrified by the minute, then I turned and ran. Herb was still down for the count. He appeared to be unconscious. _One down, two to go,_ I thought as I ran.

Something with a very strong grip snagged my wrist as I went by a tree, snapping me back violently and making me feel like my arm had been dislocated from the force. I turned, ready to throw a punch, but instead sighed in relief. "Ulrich! Thank God! It's Sissi and Yumi! There's something wrong with their eyes and they've gone crazy! Aelita said that they need you on Loko, whatever that is, and that you need to bring Jeremy with you. Sissi and Yumi are right behind me, what are we going to do?" I asked, trying hard not to panic, but the weirder things got, the less control I seemed to have over the hysteria that threatened my mind.

"We're going to lose them, and I'm going to get to Lyoko," he said, right as the two cornered us from either side between two trees.

**Aelita POV**

"Okay, Odd. We have two minutes to get to the scanner room. And it looks like we won't have Jeremy this time to help us," I said, hurriedly typing in the delayed virtualization process. As we rode down the elevator, I filled him in on what was happening at the school. "XANA has possessed Yumi. We need to hurry and deactivate the tower, before it's too late. Faye's all alone, and Yumi seems to have found her."

Odd nodded, and we both stepped into the scanners. Soon, there was a hot feeling and I rose into the air before a brush of cold wind and I was virtualized on Lyoko in the forest sector. I dropped out of the air, landing on my feet, and Odd landed next to me. "I didn't have time to program the vehicles," I told Odd.

"That's okay, Princess. The tower can't be far," he replied, taking off. I rushed off after him. We ran along the trees, hurrying as the pulsations got stronger. The entire time, all I could think about was Faye, unprotected and scared. I didn't know if she had found Ulrich, or if she would. I had to hurry, had to deactivate the tower, for her, to save her. "Aelita, duck!" Odd tackled me just in time. I hadn't seen the Krab, and its shot had nearly hit me in the head. "LaserArrow!" Odd shouted, retaliating. Two of his three shots hit the Krab, one in its face, where its lasers were shot from, and the other in the XANA symbol on its back. It exploded, and we ran on, but were intercepted by two more Krabs and a Megatank behind us.

"Odd! We're surrounded!" I exclaimed, thinking only that this was going to take time, time that Faye and Ulrich and Jeremy may not have.

**Ulrich POV**

Faye faced Sissi, in an defensive stance as I turned to do the same, staring into Yumi's Xanafied eyes. Yumi and Sissi both pooled electricity between their fingers, gathering enough voltage to kill us. Both raised their hands, ready to use it. Their hair crackled blew back, circling their heads like demonic halos. I snaked my hand back, finding Faye's hand and interlocking our fingers as I looked death in the eye. Together, in sync, they through, just as I pulled Faye to the ground with me, shielding her with my body as the electricity crackled over us and shocked Yumi and Sissi, who were blown back by the massive amount of force. They lay flat on their backs, smoke rising from them.

"Come on," I told Faye, pulling her up to her feet. "We can't stay here." I took off running towards the passage to the sewers, leading Faye by the arm.

"Are they dead?" she asked, looking back over her shoulder, slowing us down a bit. I pulled her harder, trying to force her to keep up.

"No, just knocked out," I said, coming to a stop in front of the manhole cover, kicking up rocks and dirt as I did so. Faye skidded to a halt next to me.

"Why are we stopping? Don't we have to get away?" she asked. I pulled up the cover and gestured for her to go in.

"We are getting away. Hurry up, down there. I promise it's safe," I said, shooing her. She complied, hurriedly slipping down the ladder, jumping the last couple feet. I followed, replacing the cover, also jumping the last little bit. I grabbed my skateboard, and told her to grab either Yumi's skateboard or Jeremy's scooter. She opted for the skateboard and we made our way quickly to the factory end of the tunnel. "Okay, this is going to be weird, but just trust me," I said, stopping and leaving the skateboard. She left hers and climbed up behind me, then followed as I raced to the factory. I ignored the vertigo as I jumped and slid down one of the ropes. She followed me, somehow pretty graceful doing it. She followed me into the elevator, no questions asked. I stopped in the lab, putting the headset to my ear.

"Aelita?" I asked into it, watching the screen as two Krabs and a Megatank appeared around her and Odd.

"Ulrich? Where's Jeremy? Do you know if Faye's alright?" she responded. I heard Odd shout, "LaserArrow!" before he lost ten life points from the Megatank.

"Faye's here. Jeremy… couldn't make it. I left him hidden in some bushes. How do I virtualize myself?" I asked. "Simple, remember, I'm bad with computers."

"Can I help? I don't know what you're talking about, but I'm alright with computers," Faye offered, still a little shocked at how the lab looked.

"I don't know. It's really complicated," I said.

"Ulrich! We could really use you right now!" Odd yelled. "If she's good, let her!"

I got up and handed the headset out to Faye. "Just follow Aelita's instructions, okay?" I didn't wait for a response and ran to the elevator, pushing the button that would take me to the scanners. Once I was in, I waited for a moment before it closed, then waited a little while longer. I heard Faye's voice, slightly nervous but not wavering.

"Transfer Ulrich," she said. A hot feeling accompanied her voice. Two seconds later, "Scanner Ulrich." I rose into the air. A heartbeat and a half after, "Virtualization." The cold wind rushed over me and I landed on Lyoko, immediately supersprinting to where I knew Aelita and Odd would be. "Um… there's another red target coming up behind Ulrich's dot… It's a… um… well, I don't exactly know what it is… Looks like a big bowling ball on this screen," Faye said.

"Great, just what we needed. Another Megatank," Odd said as I approached the one behind him. I drew my saber as it fired it's wall at Aelita. She dodged and as it rested, getting ready to fire again, I jumped on its back, rolling it towards me.

"Impact!" I shouted, stabbing it in the eye, then I jumped off as it exploded. Odd had, by this time, taken out one of the Krabs.

"Ulrich, the other bowling ball is behind you," Faye said. "Odd, one more hit and you're out. You're down to ten life points… wait, if you lose them all do you really die?" she asked panicking.

I heard Aelita answer her, but didn't comprehend the answer as I switched places with Odd, letting him take the Megatank and going after the Krab. "Triangulate!" I shouted, sprinting around it, confusing it. It shot one end, but I jumped on its back and stabbed, effectively killing it. I jumped down, regaining my composure. "Fusion!" I said, merging my body with the other me. I glanced around me, looking for Odd.

"Aelita, look out! It's behind you and Odd just died!" Faye shouted. I quickly jumped between Aelita and the Megatank, blocking its wall with my saber.

"Go!" I shouted. She took off toward the tower as my feet started slipping back under me. She ran, sprinting toward the tower.

"Watch out, Aelita! There's a Krab!" Faye shouted, having picked up on what we called those. I glanced back, long enough for the Megatank to get a hit on me. Not good.

**Jeremy POV**

I woke up in the bushes and stood instantly, and my whole body hurt. "What am I doing here?" I asked, looking around in confusion. Herb stood a few yards away, and turned, looking at me. Lightning shot from his fingertips as he started walking to me.

"Waiting to die," he said. I turned and ran, knowing without seeing his eyes that he had been possessed. I hoped the others were okay. I grabbed my mobile out of my pocket and called the lab.

"Hello? Jeremy?" Faye's voice answered me.

"Faye?" I asked, double checking. "I'm being chased by Herb. What are you doing in the lab?"

"Ulrich took me here. Aelita and him are on something called Loko… Odd just lost all his life points. She's trying to reach something called a tower, she says it'll help us," Faye sounded confused by all of it.

"Lyoko. Okay, tell her to hurry. I have to go. Herb's gaining on me." I disconnected and tried to find somewhere to hide.

**Odd POV**

"Um… Aelita? Jeremy told you to hurry. Herb is chasing him," Faye said as I came out of the elevator and into the lab.

"Hello, Faye," I said cheerfully.

"Odd! Are you alright?" Faye asked, looking at me. "You lost all your life points!"

"Yeah, I'm used to it. Have Sissi and Yumi shown up?" I asked, looking around the lab.

"No. The last time I saw them was before I got here. They shocked each other out." Faye frowned. "It won't permanently damage them, will it? Will you explain what's going on?" She jumped as we heard the elevator start moving.

"Faye, just keep doing what you're doing, and tell Aelita to hurry," I said, preparing to fight Yumi and Sissi.

**Aelita POV**

"Aelita, you have to hurry. Sissi and Yumi are on their way up!" Faye's worried voice informed me. The Krab she had mentioned stepped out from behind the tower and stood in front of it. It bagan shooting lasers at me. Ulrich had managed to kill the other Megatank, but must not have seen the Krab and was shot by it, squarely in the chest, disappearing.

"Ulrich!" I shouted, just barely dodging the lasers from the Krab and ducking behind a tree, defenseless.

"Odd!" Faye shouted, apparently forgetting she still had the headset. I could just barely hear Odd's screams in the background. "No, Yumi, it's me, your cousin, remember?" she said firmly. "You don't want to hurt me this isn't—AAAAAAHHHHH!" Her agony-filled scream filled my head, and hurt my chest, paining my heart with its own agony.

"Faye?" I called. "FAYE!" Her only response was to scream in even worse pain and then, all was silent. I assumed the headset had been knocked away. The instinct to protect her drove me out from behind my protective tree and out in the open. The Krab immediately fired at me, and I hoped I had the ability to get to the tower alone. If I didn't, I would die trying.

**Jeremy POV**

I had hidden from Herb behind a bush near the woods. He had found me, and now he stood over me, lightning shooting from his fingertips and into me. I screamed, feeling the white hot pain expanding within me, sending shockwaves of pain through my entire being, all over my body. Fought against it, tried to consciously force my heart to continue beating as it desperately wished to stop.

**Faye POV**

The pain increased as Yumi tortured me. I laid there, and finally shut my mouth, deciding that screaming wasn't helping me any. I was laying on the ground, but close enough that the headset was still on. Odd was down; Sissi stood over him enjoying his pain immensely. They both laughed evilly. "Aelita! Please!" I screamed.

**Aelita POV**

"Aelita! Please!" Faye screamed. Her voice, so full of pain, needing me to save her… something inside me snapped a little bit. I dodged the Krab's lasers, letting my determination fuel my feet. I sped right up to the Krab, still dodging, taking only one hit in the arm. Finally, I made it right up to it. I paused as It shot the laser from under its shell, and then raced under before it could hit me, right into the tower. I progressed quickly along the first platform.

**Jeremy POV**

I couldn't fight anymore. I laid my head back and accepted defeat.

**Aelita POV**

I did a flip as I rose to the second platform. I moved to the center and placed my hand on the screen.

**Ulrich POV**

I rushed into the lab only to be intercepted by Sissi. Her splitting her energy between Odd and me seemed to revive him a little. Faye lay on the floor, nearly dead from Yumi's power. "Ae…Aelita…." She mumbled, her head falling back onto the ground as her eyes shut.

**Aelita POV**

"Ae…Aelita…." Faye's voice, weak and defeated, came from the lab. I entered the code Lyoko. "Tower deactivated," I said as the data that made up the walls of the tower slid down and left them black.

**Ulrich POV**

Yumi and Sissi dropped to the ground, the XANA ghosts exiting their bodies. Odd, who was lying on the ground in pain, army crawled over to Faye, checking to see if she was alright. I stumbled over to the computer, pulling the headset away from Faye and hooking it over my own ear.

"Aelita?" I asked, my head full of pain.

"Ulrich! Are you alright?" she asked.

"Walk me through the return to the past function. Faye and Odd are hurt, and we haven't heard from Jeremy in a while," I said, bringing up the menu she said and typing in all that she told me to. I pressed the enter key. "Return to the past now," I said. The big white bubble engulfed everything, and it was as if we had started the day all over again. The world was safe again, for now. I looked at Odd and high-fived him.

"Good job on the return trip, Ulrich," he smiled as Aelita, Faye, and Sissi all made their way to us again.

"Thanks," I smiled as he propped his arm up on my shoulder and leaned against me. "You know, I really hate using the computer."

"I don't know why. It's just another part of being a hero," he said, grinning.

**A/N: Long chapter, I know. But I hope it was good. I didn't really know if I'd be good at doing a XANA attack, but I hope it worked alright. Anyway, next chapter will hopefully be up soon!**


	4. Breathe

**A/N: Picking up on the pairings yet? ;)**

**Chapter Four: Breathe**

**Ulrich POV**

After the day restarted, things were pretty boring. Faye hadn't remembered anything from before the return trip and was her polite and friendly self, Odd was the happy-go-lucky joker, Aelita was shy and sweet, Jeremy was nerdy and obsessive, Yumi was cool and kind, and William was irritating and stuck up. Most people thought I didn't like William because I had feelings for Yumi, but that wasn't true. I didn't even really have feelings for Yumi, other than friendly ones. I couldn't. I didn't like William simply because he was stuck up and annoying, never seemed to want to shut up, and always competing with me for Yumi's attention, even though there really wasn't a competition. I was trying to get her to not like me just as much as William was trying to get her to like him. It was complicated and frustrated me to no end.

"What are you thinking about, Ulrich?" Odd asked me as he put up his video game and lied down. We lie there in our underwear, though he also wore a shirt. He was more self-conscious than I, always had been. I looked away from him, up at the ceiling. Odd was the only one I really talked to about my problems, the one person I could truly tell stuff to, but I still had problems looking him in the eye whenever I talked about my feelings.

"Just thinking about the Yumi situation," I said, closing my eyes. "I really can't get her to stop liking me. I've tried everything. The more I try to pretend I like other girls or get angry when she hangs out with William, the more she seems to like me. I don't get it. How am I supposed to get her off my back if she likes it when I'm being a jerk?" I asked him, irritated by the whole situation.

"Have you tried acting like you like other guys?" Odd asked, grinning at me. I grabbed one of Kiwi's toys that had ended up near my bed and threw it at him.

"Of course not! She'd never be friends with me then," I said laying back down onto my pillow. "That's all I've ever wanted from her, you know?"

"I know, but obviously she doesn't. And do you really think that being a jerk is going to make her want to be your friend?" he added, rubbing the spot on his arm where the toy had hit him.

"Well, it's better than telling her I'm gay," I said, pulling my pillow over my face to hide my blush. Odd didn't know that I really was, so his jokes hit closer to home than I would have liked.

"Have you ever considered, I don't know, just telling her you aren't interested?" he asked a few moments later.

"Yeah. I just don't want to hurt her, you know?" I asked, pressing the pillow harder against my face and wondering how long it would take me to suffocate.

"I do know, but don't you think letting her believe you like her is hurting her?" I hated it when he asked these kinds of questions. It was like cheating. "And by the way, are you ever going to tell me about the person you do like?" I hated those questions even more. It was so ironic that he would ask them.

"No. I'm not," I said, quickly closing down that topic. "What am I supposed to say to her anyway?"

"Who? The girl you like?"

"No, Yumi."

"Just tell her that you're not interested. Tell her you like her a lot as friends, that you feel very close to her like that, but just don't look at her romantically."

"Yeah, because things are just that simple. How do you do it, Odd? Go back and forth from girl to girl and never let any of them get attached to you?" I moved my pillow and looked at him now. He was staring at the ceiling, not looking at me. He looked thoughtful, almost sad, which was strange for him.

"They just never seem to hold my attention for long… Or I don't hold theirs. And I think I prefer it that way," he said.

"Why though? Don't you want to, I don't know, find some girl to have a long lasting relationship with?" I asked genuinely curious.

"No, to be honest, I don't," he said, surprising me. "Mostly, I date girls because I'm expected to. My sisters and the rest of my family have all had a lot of dates with the opposite gender. When my oldest sister was in school, she dated every guy in her year, the year above hers, and the year below hers. I'm not saying we're all a bunch of players because it's encouraged in my family, it's just strange if a Della Robbia doesn't date a bunch of people. You kind of… don't make sense to the rest of us."

We sat quietly while I digested this. "So, you don't like any of the girls you date?" I asked finally. "None?"

"I liked Sam, but not any more than you like Yumi." Odd rolled over, facing me. "Really, you have to tell her."

"I know. It's just… I don't want to rock the boat with us. Not with everything we have to do on Lyoko," I said honestly. "I don't want things to get weird and then cause problems for everyone else," I added, though it wasn't needed.

"Oh. I hadn't thought of it that way," he said, taking in the thought. "I can see what you mean, but still. Who knows how long it's going to be until we finish off XANA? You have to tell her sometime, and if we don't finish him off for another three years, that's just time you have to spend with Yumi stuck to you." I groaned. He was right, of course. I just didn't want to admit it. "Face it, Ulrich, you're just making excuses. Maybe subconsciously you really do want her," Odd said softly.

"Don't be silly, Odd, I can't want Yumi," I said, shrugging it off.

"Why couldn't you?" he asked, sounding a little upset, which was, well, odd for him.

"Because, I just… don't. I can't, okay?"

"Because of the other girl?" he asked. "Because if it is, she better be prettier than Yumi, and she better love you more than Yumi, because Yumi really cares," he said, getting worked up, which really did surprise me.

"Um, no it isn't because there's another girl," I said, confusion leaking into my voice.

"But there is, isn't there? You're going to throw Yumi away even though she's put up with you for forever and she loves you and she helps you save the world every other day when XANA attacks. You're going to throw that away for some other girl you barely know, who doesn't love you, isn't your best friend. It's crazy Ulrich! You have something perfectly good right in front of you, waiting for you, but you're too blind to see her!" Odd burst out, scaring me a little bit.

"I can't love her, Odd!" I argued.

"And why not?" he asked angrily.

"What does it matter? I just can't!" I said, sitting up to look at him more clearly, leaning forward, angry at him. He mirrored my stance, sitting on his bed, leaning toward me.

"That's just an excuse! Why won't you tell me who the other girl is, huh?" he asked, a taunting note in his voice. "I bet there really isn't one, is there? It's just another good excuse!"

"You're wrong, Odd! You don't know what you're talking about!" I said angrily, hearing my heart beating in my ears.

"I do so! You're not happy with another girl, not happy with Yumi because you're happy to be miserable!" he said, standing over me. "You're happy to be miserable and push away people who care about you because you love to hurt, don't you Ulrich?! You just love the pain! Well, I'm tired of the pain! Yumi's great for you and if I can't keep you from being miserable with yourself, she's the next best thing!" he partially yelled. I was so angry, I stood up, too, and shoved him down onto the bed so that I was now standing over him and he was sitting.

"Don't you get it?" I asked, angrily. My fists clenched in rage. "I can't love Yumi. Not _won't_, Odd, _can't_. I wasn't lying, there is someone else, but the someone else is a guy." I took a deep breath, steeling myself for my next words. "I'm gay, okay? I can't love Yumi because I can't love a girl!" Odd looked up at me, shock written all over his face. Not a full second after I finished my statement, I realized what I had just done. I backed away, all rage replaced by sheer terror at what Odd's reaction would be. I wanted to look away from Odd's eyes, from those wonderful green eyes, but I couldn't. They held me there like nails in my feet. Finally, he lied down, turned his back to me.

"I'm sorry, Ulrich. I didn't know," he said. "I shouldn't have yelled at you. I won't tell anyone. You're secret is safe with me." I breathed a sigh of relief, trying to ignore the tears threatening to sting my eyes.

"It's okay," I said. My voice sounded strange even to my own ears. "Thanks, and… I'm sorry, too." I lied down in my own bed, foregoing the blanket, and instead lying on top of it. I faced away from Odd, too, as the tears started to spill over. I bit my lip hard, trying to breathe normally so Odd wouldn't hear.

"Ulrich?" Odd asked after a few moments.

I cleared my throat. "Yes, Odd?" I asked thickly.

"That guy… who is he?" he asked, a strange note to his voice.

"Someone really special, Odd. Someone more beautiful than Yumi. Someone who puts up with me so much more, who truly cares about me on a level I don't think she gets. Someone who saves my world every day," I say, my throat closing up again as fresh tears slipped out.

"Who?" he asked, again. I heard him sit up and turn to face me. I buried my face in my pillow for the second time that night, and curled around it on my side, leaving my back to him.

"My best friend," I said softly, but knowing he could still hear me. "You." Silence. Then more silence. Then more. "I'm sorry, Odd. I'm so sorry. I'll move dorms if you want. I didn't mean to fall for you, but… you're just... you're just so _you_, I couldn't help it, and…" I trailed off, then just buried my face in my pillow, trying to control the tears. I wondered again how long it would take me to suffocate.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. Instinctively, I scooted away, sure he was just doing it out of guilt. He sat down on the edge of the bed, his hand reaching out to touch my shoulder again, then rubbing against my upper arm. My heart stopped at his touch, or maybe just skipped beats. I wasn't sure. All I could be aware of was his hand on my arm, the dip of the bed where he sat. My tears still came, I couldn't help them, but he finally ended up getting up again. I buried my face more deeply in the pillow, wrapping it around so I couldn't hear him. I didn't want anything to do with Odd. Not now, not ever. I wished I'd never even met him. Of course, I knew even thinking it that it wasn't true. I loved Odd. I was just extremely upset. I'd just made sure that I'd lost him. How long before I blacked out? I shoved the pillow over my face harder, desperately trying to block out the air.

Something soft hit the back of my head and the bed behind it. A pillow? I lie still, perfectly still, tense all over. Odd pulled the blanket up, slid in behind me, and wrapped his arm around my waist, his body curving behind mine with the blanket between us from his stomach down. I found that strangely comforting. He pulled me back against him, fitting me perfectly against his body, which was strange because I was taller. His forehead rested against the back of my head and I sighed, thoroughly comforted. Slowly, so slowly, the tears stopped, and I pulled the pillow away from my face, spent. Only when I dried my face did I dare to turn around and look at him. He just smiled. I rolled over, facing him, and he pulled my head onto his chest. Not long after, I fell asleep, and it was the most peaceful sleep I'd had in years.

**A/N: YAY CUZ ULRICH LOVES ODD! I told you at the beginning, the pairings were going to be questionable to some of you. Guess what? Don't like, don't read anymore. Those of you who do like, review? Maybe? Please? :) Until next chapter, dears!**


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